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RAND Health – Previously Featured Research
40 Studies for 40 years— February 2009
In 1969, the RAND Corporation used $25,000 of its own funds to establish the Health Sciences Program. Today, the Health unit is the largest research division within RAND. Its annual budget of approximately $60 million makes it one of the largest private health research groups in the world.
We will mark our 40th anniversary throughout the coming year by highlighting 40 studies that reflect the breadth and scope of our work and have made the greatest contribution to shaping health care policy, advancing research, and improving health around the world.
Heatlh Care Reform: At the Heart of the Debate — July 2009
For forty years, RAND analysts have been providing objective research on many of the topics now at the heart of the health reform debate.
Comprehensive Assessment of Reform Efforts (COMPARE) — January 2009
The RAND Corporation's COMPARE initiative provides information and tools to help policymakers, the media, and other interested patries understand, design, and evaluate health policies.
Influences on Adolescent Sexual Behavior — November 2008
RAND Health has worked on multiple studies identifying the predictors and consequences of adolescent sexual intercourse. The most recent work, by Dr. Anita Chandra, is the first study to demonstrate a link between exposure to sexual content on television and the experience of a pregnancy before the age of 20.
Emergency Preparedness Month — September 2008
September is National Emergency Preparedness month. A collection of recent research by RAND Health supporting Emergency Preparedness includes things individuals can do to stay safe during emergency situations, but also what lessons we can learn, culturally, from previous emergency situations.
Empowering Communities to Prevent Substance Abuse — August 2007
Abuse of alcohol, tobacco, and other drugs exacts a high toll in local communities as it is frequently linked to a variety of chronic diseases, injuries, and crime and violence. Programs that prevent this abuse can improve community health. However, such programs are challenging for communities to implement because they require a wide range of knowledge and skills, involve many steps, and must be implemented in many different contexts.
RAND Research on Aging & Health – July 2007
Older patients are a particularly important focus for quality-of-care evaluation because they are at risk of serious declines in health and function as a result of poor care and because they use a large amount of health care resources. Challenges for health policy include caring for elders in nursing homes and in the community, assessing the quality of that care, designing and monitoring payment systems for that care, and building interdisciplinary academic capacity in geriatrics.
The Burden of Urologic Diseases in America — June 2007
RAND provided data analysis for this UCLA-led project to quantify the burden of urologic diseases on the American public. Prior to this study, no single data source described and evaluated the scope of the specialty of urology. For the first time, realistic estimates are available for the extent of urologic diseases, associated healthcare expenditures, variations in treatments, and the effect of these diseases on minority populations.
Obesity in America — May 2007
According to recent research by RAND economist Roland Sturm, the proportion of Americans who are severely obese increased by 50 percent between 2000 to 2005. The heaviest groups of Americans have been increasing the fastest over for the past 20 years. Individuals who are obese face greater challenges in terms of disability and chronic disease than do their non-obese counterparts. Findings have far-ranging implications for health and the economy. Middle-aged adults with a body mass index of over 40 are expected to have double the health costs of their lower-weight peers. Obesity has translated into disabilities for all ages. This study is based on data from the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance Survey, the world's largest annual telephone survey.
Looking back on 25 years of Project ALERT— April 2007
25 years ago this year, Donald Hubbs, President of the Conrad N. Hilton Foundation, asked RAND to address the looming crisis of adolescent drug use. RAND researcher Phyllis Ellickson's ensuing work made her a pioneer in the field of prevention science. Ellickson's team began with classroom programs grounded in behavioral theories and validated research that were designed to impact the adolescent use of cigarettes, marijuana, and alcohol. The resulting program, Project ALERT, is widely recognized as one of the most effective approaches to curbing adolescent drug use and is used in all 50 states, reaching more than 1 1/2 million children each year.
Improved Diagnostic Technologies for the Developing World — December 2006
RAND Health researchers are identifying opportunities for new investments in global health diagnostics for diseases such as malaria, tuberculosis, HIV and other sexually transmitted diseases. Researchers recently assisted the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation in developing and facilitating a Forum on Global Health Diagnostics, which brought together experts from around the world to identify critical diagnostic needs, emerging technologies, and key intervention points.
Public Health Preparedness — June 2006
The United States faces a number of serious public health threats, ranging from the immediate to the longer term. RAND Health researchers investigate a wide range of issues that could significantly affect our nation's public health, now or in the future. Key areas of research include the global threat of infectious diseases, terrorism and bioterrorism preparedness, state and local readiness, and the mental health effects of terrorism and violence.
Community Health Improvement Collaboration — Mar. 2006
A recent issue of Ethnicity and Disease gives an insider's view of community/academic collaborations focusing on depression in the Los Angeles area. The articles, authored by RAND researchers and colleagues, provide a unique opportunity to see many of the key elements of community-based participatory research (CBPR) in action.
Hurricane Katrina Disaster Recovery: Rebuilding Health Care in New Orleans — Nov. 2005
The severe damage to the infrastructure for health care and public health services in the metropolitan New Orleans area caused by Hurricane Katrina requires that Louisiana rebuild all elements of the health system. RAND Health was asked to provide policy briefs on a variety of issues related to the rebuilding of the health sector of metropolitan New Orleans.
Health and Spending of the Future Elderly — Sep. 2005
Policymakers face the challenge of understanding and managing future Medicare spending. But what if a cure were found for one of the deadliest diseases? What if the health status of the elderly continues to improve? Would such changes ease Medicare's financing problems? RAND Health researchers explored how changes in medical technology, disease, and disability would affect health care spending for the elderly.
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Health Information Technology — Sep. 2005
The U.S. invests over $1.7 trillion annually in healthcare, yet the healthcare system is still plagued with inefficiency and poor quality. Other industries have lowered costs and improved quality through heavy investments in information technology. Could healthcare achieve similar results? RAND Health researchers have estimated the potential costs and benefits of widespread adoption of Health Information Technology (HIT).
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